The economics and politics of instability, empire, and energy, with a focus on Latin America and the Caribbean, plus other random blather and my wonderful wonderful wife. And I’d like a cigar right now.

August 02, 2017

The Philippines is not a democracy

Philippine democracy was always sick, but it died the day President Duterte took office. You cannot have a democracy in which the executive branch can kill people at will. Full stop.

The impetus for this observation came from the recent assassination of Mayor Reynaldo Parojinog, of Ozamiz, Mindanao. Parojinog was not a good man. He was corrupt; his family ruled through intimidation and patronage. Philippine elections have never been free from violence and coercion, let alone lesser forms of bribery. But you cannot combat impunity by impunity. All you do is move the impunity from lesser weaker patrons to the national executive.

Right now, there are only two things to protect you from the Philippine state. One is obscurity. The other is the protection of powerful private interests. Under those conditions, democracy is dead.

Duterte will push until he comes up against a stronger force. A full Marcos would not surprise.